The
State Agriculture Development Committee (SADC),
which administers New Jersey's Farmland Preservation
Program, will auction the 73-acre East Windsor
Township property formerly known as the Siciliano
Farm at 11 am on Friday, December 10, in Trenton.
The addition of this property represents one more
step in reaching Governor Christine Whitman's goal
of permanently preserving 500,000 acres of New
Jersey farmland as part of her million acre initiative.
Any prospective bidder must register with the SADC
by submitting an application to qualify and a $10,000
deposit by no later than noon on Monday, December
6. The SADC acquired the East Windsor farm in August
for $660,000 with the assistance of a $200,000
grant from the County of Mercer. Under the terms
of the deed restriction, the property will be forever
preserved as farmland and cannot be used for non-agricultural
purposes. The minimum initial bid that will be
accepted is $260,000. The farm consists of two
tracts of land with a common frontage along Whitcomb
Road, bordered by Windsor-Perrineville Road to
the north and Old York Road (Route 539) to the
west. The property is vacant, but deed restrictions
permit the construction of a residence provided
that it is for agricultural purposes, as well as
the construction of other agricultural buildings.
Approximately 77 percent of the property's soils
are classified as prime farmland, and all of the
acreage is tillable crop land. The SADC acquired
the farm through its fee simple program, in which
lands are bought outright, deed restrictions are
put into place and the farms are auctioned to private
owners for agricultural use. Proceeds from the
sale will be returned to the Farmland Preservation
Program and used to preserve other New Jersey farms.
Statewide, 388 farms totaling 57,377 acres have
been permanently protected under the Farmland Preservation
Program, with approximately 19,100 additional acres
which have been approved for preservation. The
auction will be held at the Health and Agriculture
Building in Trenton. For more information, prospective
bidders should contact the SADC at (609) 984-2504.